No, this isn’t an edible pomegranate. It’s purely ornamental. For a list of garden centers near you that carry it, click on the Southern Living Plant Collection link above. Here are its vital stats and preferred growing conditions.

Size: 2 to 3 feet tall and wideLight: Full to partial sunHardiness: Cold-hardy outside to about 10 degrees. USDA Zone 7. If winter gets colder in your area, bring it inside to a cool room for winter.Soil: Well-drainedWatering: Do not overwater! This is critical. Let soil go dry between thorough waterings. Do not let it sit in a water-filled saucer.Fertilizer: Feed with organic, slow-release fertilizer in spring. I recommend Plant-tone 5-3-3.Prune: Winter or spring, but seldom needed

‘Purple Pixie’ dwarf loropetalum. Photo: Ralph Anderson.

2. ‘Purple Pixie’ dwarf loropetalum.There are a zillion purple loropetalums out there, but only one ‘Purple Pixie.’ (It’s also in our Southern Living Plant Collection.) Unlike many loropetalums that get huge, this one stays low with a cascading habit. You can plant it as a ground cover, but I love it for containers. I have one growing in a container that’s more that 3 feet tall. ‘Purple Pixie’ spills out of it all the way to the ground. You can’t see the pot any more. This shrub is also pest-, drought-, and deer-resistant.

‘Purple Pixie’ keeps its deep purple foliage year-round. During cold winters, it may get a little bald on top, but then quickly recovers once the weather warms. Bright pink flowers appear in early spring. Vital stats and preferred growing conditions:

3. ‘Bloomerang’ lilac. Peeps, I know what you’re thinking. Doesn’t lilac bloom just in spring? And doesn’t it fail to bloom in warm climates? Not this one! It’s a break-through from Proven Winners. It looks like a lilac, smells like a lilac, but unlike other lilacs it blooms not only in spring, but off and on through the summer — even in the Lower South (USDA Zone 8A). This blows Grumpy’s mind!

Now let me qualify my enthusiasm. When I say it repeat blooms, I mean it blooms heavily in spring and then lightly again in the summer. But the fact that a lilac with the cherished lilac fragrance blooms at all in the South is something to cheer. Plus the blooms attract butterflies and deer don’t eat it. Look for ‘Bloomerang’ in garden centers. Vital stats and growing conditions:

Size: 4 to 5 feet tall and wideLight: Full sunHardiness: Good for USDA Zones 3 to 8ASoil: fertile, well-drainedWatering: Needs only occasional watering once establishedFertilizer: Feed in spring with Plant-tone 5-3-3Prune: Clip off old flowers as they fade